[HopDen]

What would be a good choice to add some color without adding any malt flavor to an American IPA? Asfar as style guidelines I am currently at 5.3 but 6.0 is the minimum. I know I could just forget about a few points of color and proceed with my recipe as is and that's what I'll prob do but I am curious how to add it.
 Grain additions are as follows: Rahr 2 row 97.6% and Great Western C-40 2.4% I don't want to add anymore crystal/cara malts.

[denny]

What would be a good choice to add some color without adding any malt flavor to an American IPA? Asfar as style guidelines I am currently at 5.3 but 6.0 is the minimum. I know I could just forget about a few points of color and proceed with my recipe as is and that's what I'll prob do but I am curious how to add it.
 Grain additions are as follows: Rahr 2 row 97.6% and Great Western C-40 2.4% I don't want to add anymore crystal/cara malts.

I assure you that no one can tell the difference between 5.3 and 6. Youre also assuming that both the listed malt color and the software are dead accurate. Neither is the case.  If I was intent on doing it, I'd cold steep a few oz. of something like Midnight Wheat and add a bit at a time to the kettle.

[Bob357]

Just an ounce of Carafa II or III will add some color. Any perceptible flavor should get lost in an IPA.

[hopfenundmalz]

Color predictions are just that, a prediction based on a model, which depends on accurate input data. I'm not sure I would worry too much.

I often add midnight wheat at Vorlauf, or as Denny says, cold steep and add just the liquid to the boil.

[HopDen]

Thanks for the input guys.

[Kevin]

There is a product that English breweries have used for over 100 years called "Brewers Caramel". It is just a coloring agent they used (and still use) to adjust the color of their finished beer. I bought some from a UK shop but the shipping to the US was double the cost of the bottle!

This isn't where I bought mine but it's the same stuff... https://www.the-home-brew-shop.co.uk/brewers-caramel-home-brew.html

[goose]

There is a product that English breweries have used for over 100 years called "Brewers Caramel". It is just a coloring agent they used (and still use) to adjust the color of their finished beer. I bought some from a UK shop but the shipping to the US was double the cost of the bottle!

This isn't where I bought mine but it's the same stuff... https://www.the-home-brew-shop.co.uk/brewers-caramel-home-brew.html

If I am not mistaken, that is what Yuengling uses to color their lager.  They do not color it with regular malts.  If they don't use Brewer's Caramel, they use a caramel food coloring.

You can also use an ounce or less of roasted barley to add color.  that small amount will not effect the flavor, at least it didn't on my palate.  I did that with my Irish Red for years before I started using three different crystal malts in the beer.

[denny]

Color predictions are just that, a prediction based on a model, which depends on accurate input data. I'm not sure I would worry too much.

I often add midnight wheat at Vorlauf, or as Denny says, cold steep and add just the liquid to the boil.

I got in the habit of adding coloring liquid to the kettle when I used Sinamar a lot. I found it easier to gauge the color addition that way as opposed to the mash, where I felt like it was more of a guess.

[fredthecat]

cold steep or adding dark grains late to the mash really results in a milder than expected flavour. i added a lb of black malt to a stout with 15 min left in the mash and it did not taste like a stout, more like a dark ale, but the colour was high 30s SRM.

i find there are different tints to malts as well, when i want a slight red tint and darker colour i've been using weyermann dehusked carafa III in small amounts. it looks nice. small amts of black malt end up brown IMHO

[Cliffs]

I use roasted barley. At the miniscule amounts needed to add color, I cant detect any roast.

[joeinma]

Sinamar is perfect for color adjustments. It's an extract made from Carafa malts and is used for color adjustments without adding roasted malt flavors. A bottle of it will say that 1 ounce will add 5 SRM to 5 gallons of beer, but it reality it's more like 3.5 SRM per ounce per 5 gallons of beer.   

[denny]

Sinamar is perfect for color adjustments. It's an extract made from Carafa malts and is used for color adjustments without adding roasted malt flavors. A bottle of it will say that 1 ounce will add 5 SRM to 5 gallons of beer, but it reality it's more like 3.5 SRM per ounce per 5 gallons of beer.

Is it still available? I haven't been able to find it for several years.

[BrewBama]

William’s still sells Sinamar

[denny]

William’s still sells Sinamar

Thanks!

[jeffy]

I collected about four gallons of black stuff by draining "empty" plastic barrels of coloring liquid from Yuengling.  I packaged and shipped some to a brewer on this forum a few years ago and still have almost four gallons remaining.  It is so thick and viscous that it is hard to dispense from the bucket into a smaller container, but let me know if anybody wants some.  Free, plus shipping from Tampa.